OH/043
Reference code
OH/043
Level of description
Item
Title
Bowles, Tom
Scope and content
Recorded by Sharon Whetlor
Bargeman on the Grand Union Canal\r\nSummary and Transcript\r\nBorn Albany Rd Brentford, 2/4/1910. Went on a barge about 5/6 years old. Went with mother & baby brother. Travelled around dales & canals. Went to school at the Butts in Brentford when he could. Father was Captain of the barge & lived on it. Age 13 Tom was kloaned to another barge captain. Age 14 worked for Emanuel Smith as a tug boy. Worked 1 year. Job at Thames Steam, Tug & Lighterage Comp for 22 yrs. Joined just befor 1926 strike & joined the union when he was 16. Transport & General Workers. Did a variety of jobs. Served Hayes & Southall from Brentford. Sugar & oranges, tracks for railways, sugar, nuts, cocoa to Nestle, timber to HMV for gramophones, to Uxbridge, Watford, wood pulp, beans, food to Greenford. Goods loaded from ships into barges, barges into the canal. Sometimes then into monkey boats at Brentford, Northumberland Wharf - transported around the country. Men & families lived on the boats. Tom couldn't work on the Thames without a licence. Didn't have a licence because when Tom was 16/17 father died & mother had 8 children & Tom had to look after the family. At 16/17 sometimes earned a 'man's' money to help the family. Sactificed his licence. Tom operated a little tug during the war. Pulled as many as 30 bigger tugs. In the 30s the river and canals were very busy. Midlands factories used the canals. Took the tug up the canal. At 14 Tom's job was to get the locks ready for the tug & sweeping up the barges as a 'boy'. Paid 4/6 a day 27/- p.w. 8d hour overtime. Tried to get 2/3 hrs a day overtime. As a 'man' earned 11/2 p day 12/- p day £3p.w. Night work got £7. Very good wages. Hours 48 hr p.w. -> 44 hrs p.w. Kept working to finish the job. Sometimes worked all night. Paid overtime. Hours 8-5, 1 hr dinner. No holiday pay. Holiday pay about 1939. Dockers packed up at 12 on Sat. Tom as a waterman had to work up to 5. Could walk across the barges. If you hit a monkey boat there were problems because people lived on them. If work was slack you had to sign on. Got 15/- p.w. Did it many times. Used to line up on the bridge & get work with another firm & then your old firm would demand you returned to them. Couldn't do as you liked. Marched in a strike. Union would tell Tom when to strike> had to strike, couldn't work against them. Safety regs - inspectors, unions had rules about lyting. Women loaded barges. Had to work as hard as men. Got 1/2 day on Sat. Got holidays. Upset office workers who always had a week and then wanted 2 weeks. National Docks Labour Board - pool of work. Brges pulled by horses then by tractors. Boats pulled by horses all the way to Birmingham. Loaned to a man on a barge. Started out at 3.30 in the morning. Tom had a reserve job during the war. Great football fan. Followed Brentford & Arsenal. Story about getting married & delaying the service in order to be able to watch Brentford play. Big crowds at Brentford playing Preston North End. Crowd of 39,000. Played for Brentford A team. Stories about football matches.
Bargeman on the Grand Union Canal\r\nSummary and Transcript\r\nBorn Albany Rd Brentford, 2/4/1910. Went on a barge about 5/6 years old. Went with mother & baby brother. Travelled around dales & canals. Went to school at the Butts in Brentford when he could. Father was Captain of the barge & lived on it. Age 13 Tom was kloaned to another barge captain. Age 14 worked for Emanuel Smith as a tug boy. Worked 1 year. Job at Thames Steam, Tug & Lighterage Comp for 22 yrs. Joined just befor 1926 strike & joined the union when he was 16. Transport & General Workers. Did a variety of jobs. Served Hayes & Southall from Brentford. Sugar & oranges, tracks for railways, sugar, nuts, cocoa to Nestle, timber to HMV for gramophones, to Uxbridge, Watford, wood pulp, beans, food to Greenford. Goods loaded from ships into barges, barges into the canal. Sometimes then into monkey boats at Brentford, Northumberland Wharf - transported around the country. Men & families lived on the boats. Tom couldn't work on the Thames without a licence. Didn't have a licence because when Tom was 16/17 father died & mother had 8 children & Tom had to look after the family. At 16/17 sometimes earned a 'man's' money to help the family. Sactificed his licence. Tom operated a little tug during the war. Pulled as many as 30 bigger tugs. In the 30s the river and canals were very busy. Midlands factories used the canals. Took the tug up the canal. At 14 Tom's job was to get the locks ready for the tug & sweeping up the barges as a 'boy'. Paid 4/6 a day 27/- p.w. 8d hour overtime. Tried to get 2/3 hrs a day overtime. As a 'man' earned 11/2 p day 12/- p day £3p.w. Night work got £7. Very good wages. Hours 48 hr p.w. -> 44 hrs p.w. Kept working to finish the job. Sometimes worked all night. Paid overtime. Hours 8-5, 1 hr dinner. No holiday pay. Holiday pay about 1939. Dockers packed up at 12 on Sat. Tom as a waterman had to work up to 5. Could walk across the barges. If you hit a monkey boat there were problems because people lived on them. If work was slack you had to sign on. Got 15/- p.w. Did it many times. Used to line up on the bridge & get work with another firm & then your old firm would demand you returned to them. Couldn't do as you liked. Marched in a strike. Union would tell Tom when to strike> had to strike, couldn't work against them. Safety regs - inspectors, unions had rules about lyting. Women loaded barges. Had to work as hard as men. Got 1/2 day on Sat. Got holidays. Upset office workers who always had a week and then wanted 2 weeks. National Docks Labour Board - pool of work. Brges pulled by horses then by tractors. Boats pulled by horses all the way to Birmingham. Loaned to a man on a barge. Started out at 3.30 in the morning. Tom had a reserve job during the war. Great football fan. Followed Brentford & Arsenal. Story about getting married & delaying the service in order to be able to watch Brentford play. Big crowds at Brentford playing Preston North End. Crowd of 39,000. Played for Brentford A team. Stories about football matches.